Rasuwa flood death toll climbs to 22 dozens missing; 384 tourists missing India, China, World Bank offer financial support

Kathmandu / Aug 26: Twenty-two persons have been confirmed dead and dozens remain missing after a flash flood swept through Rasuwa and neighbouring districts on Wednesday, disrupting communications and making rescue operations difficult.

Thirty-two security personnel from the Nepal Police and Armed Police Force are also missing in Timure, Rasuwa. Search and rescue teams have been deployed across the affected areas.

The flood has left 60 people associated with the 20-megawatt Langtang Khola Hydropower Project out of contact, according to project promoter Bijay Mohan Bhattarai.

Twenty-five engineers, drivers and kitchen staff and 35 workers who were inside a tunnel have been out of contact since Wednesday morning, Bhattarai said.

“There were 25 people, including engineers, drivers and kitchen staff, and another 35 were working inside the tunnel. We have not been able to contact them since morning,” he said.

The hydropower project had been completed and was scheduled to undergo testing in two days, Bhattarai said.

Fifteen employees of the Rasuwa Customs Office in Timure are also missing, according to Rajendra Dhungana, chief of the customs office.

The Nepali Army has rescued 88 people caught in the flood, army spokesperson Rajaram Basnet said. Thirteen of those rescued have been admitted to Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital in Kathmandu for treatment, while the others have been moved to safe locations locally. Some injured people are receiving treatment at Trishuli Camp, he said.

Twelve helicopters, including four operated by the Nepali Army and others by private companies, had been deployed for the rescue operation.

Rescue flights have been repeatedly disrupted by poor weather. From Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) in Kathmandu, 29 private and six military helicopter flights have so far been made to the flood-hit areas of Rasuwa, according to the airport’s rescue coordination centre. Of those, 23 private and two military helicopters returned to Kathmandu carrying injured people.

Three helicopters carrying rescue and relief supplies to Rasuwa were also forced to turn back because of bad weather. The airport said adverse weather was also making it difficult to send additional helicopters into the affected areas.

Home Minister Sudan Gurung and Minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation Khadak Raj Paudel have been coordinating rescue and relief flights from TIA.

384 tourists including 291 foreigners missing after Rasuwa flood

A total of 384 domestic and foreign tourists and trekkers have gone missing following a severe flood in the Bhotekoshi River in Rasuwa on Wednesday morning.

According to the Nepal Tourism Board’s second situation report issued on Wednesday, those unaccounted for include 291 foreign tourists and 93 Nepali tourists and trekkers.Nepal Travel Guide

The missing foreign nationals are from India, Australia, the Netherlands, the United States, Malaysia, the United Kingdom and South Africa, while the nationalities of some others have yet to be confirmed.

Details received from tourism agencies show that the largest number of missing tourists are those who travelled through Trekkers Society, with 92 people—77 foreigners and 15 Nepalis—reported unaccounted for.

Similarly, 71 people travelling through Samrat Tours and Travels, including 59 Indians and 12 Nepalis, are missing. Leaf Holidays has reported 55 people missing, including 46 Indians and nine Nepalis, while the whereabouts of 52 people associated with Himalayan Glacier, including 37 foreigners and 15 Nepalis, are also unknown.

The board said 31 people associated with Kailash Journey, 27 with Fishtail Tours and Travels, 20 with Alpine Eco Trek, 17 with Kathmandu Holidays, 12 with Richa Tours and Travels, and seven Nepali tourists travelling through Explore Vacation are also unaccounted for.

The Nepal Tourism Board, Tourist Police, local administration, trekking guides and security agencies are currently verifying records of missing tourists and intensifying search and rescue operations in the affected areas.

India, China, World Bank offer financial support

India, China and the World Bank have moved swiftly to coordinate financial assistance for the rescue, relief and reconstruction of flood-affected areas in disaster-hit Nepal, according to the Ministry of Finance (MoF).

Soon after news of the flooding emerged on Wednesday morning, David Sislen, the World Bank’s Country Director for Nepal, informed Finance Minister Dr. Swarnim Wagle that up to Rs. 25 billion could be mobilised from various sources as emergency assistance.

Likewise, India has asked the government to provide a list of relief materials urgently required for flood victims. Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal, while coordinating with the Prime Minister, Finance Minister and other senior ministers, said preparations were under way to bring Indian relief supplies to Kathmandu today.

Similarly, China has also decided to provide immediate cash assistance. Chinese Ambassador Zhang Maoming has asked the Nepal government, through the Finance Ministry, to initiate the process for transferring the funds.

Expressing the government’s gratitude for the generous commitments of assistance from neighbouring countries and development partners, FM Dr. Wagle is coordinating with the relevant government agencies and holding discussions on the modalities for receiving and utilising the assistance.

The way has been cleared for mobilising both domestic and international assistance after today’s Cabinet meeting declared the affected municipalities in Rasuwa, Nuwakot and Dhading ‘disaster crisis areas’.